BANCROFT 

LIBRARY 
<• 

THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 


SPEECH 


OF 


HON.  AARON  A.  SARGENT, 

OF  CALIFORNIA, 


ON    THE 


PACIFIC  EAILEOAD 


AS   A  MILITARY   NECESSITY. 


DELIVERED    IN    THE    HOUSE    OF    REPRESENTATIVES, 
JANUARY  31,  1862. 


WASHINGTON: 

PRESS    OF    GEO.   C.   RAND  &  AVERY. 
1862. 


JL9J-  o  •  c,  8 

BANCROFT  LIBR 

SPEECH 


LIBRARY 


HON,  AARON  A,  SARGENT, 


The  House  being  in  Committee  ,of  the  Whole  on  the  State  of  the  Union, 
MR.  SARGENT,  of  California,  arose  and  said :  — 

MR.  CHAIRMAN  :  — • 

I  did  not  rise  for  the  purpose  of  discussing  the  slavery  question  in  any 
of  its  aspects.  Sufficient  time  has  been  abstracted  from  the  deliberations 
of  the  House,  on  both  sides  of  this  chamber,  to  lead  to  results  upon  that 
matter.  Although  I  have  settled  convictions  upon  the  duty  of  Congress 
and  the  Executive  in  the  disposal  of  that  question  which  has  disturbed 
our  international  relations  for  half  a  century,  and  finally  involved  us  in  a 
disastrous  war,  I  prefer  to  express  those  convictions  by  my  votes  upon 
the  pending  measures,  and  to  use  the  hour  accorded  to  me  by  the  cour- 
tesy of  the  committee  in  the  presentation  of  my  views  of  a  matter  which 
has  heretofore,  at  this  session,  been  neglected  in  both  Houses,  and  in 
which  the  interests  and  safety  of  my  constituents,  the  continuance  of 
our  Pacific  Empire,  and  the  good  name  of  the  nation  are  involved.  I 
shall  treat  the  question  as  not  one  of  local  importance,  for  the  whole  coun- 
try is  interested  in  our  action  upon  it,  and  the  whole  country  must  suffer 
by  our  supineness. 

Sir,  one  year  ago  this  House,  after  full  consideration,  passed  a  bill  for 
the  construction  of  a  railroad  and  telegraph  line  from  the  valley  of  the 
Mississippi  to  the  Pacific,  for  the  reasons,  as  indicated  in  the  title  of  the 
bill,  that  military  and  other  purposes  of  public  interest  were  subserved 
thereby.  The  vote  by  which  that  bill  was  passed  was  the  consummation 
of  a  long  struggle  in  this  House,  upon  one  side  of  which  were  arrayed  the 
progressive,  far-seeing  men  of  the  country,  representing  constituencies  con- 
trolling large  capital,  and  anxious  for  the  inauguration  of  this  great  na- 
tional measure.  Energy,  wisdom,  and  patriotism  distinguished  the  ef- 
forts of  the  men  who  fought  for  this  great  object  through  many  stormy 
debates  in  Congress.  Upon  the  other  side  were  ranged  in  stolid  oppo- 

HE. 


sition  the  men  who  ever  hang  upon  the  wheels  of  progress ;  those  who  delay 
enterprises  of  great  pith  and  moment  by  scruples  concerning  powers  and 
minor  expediencies ;  the  men  who  could  discern  constitutional  power  to 
indefinitely  expand  the  territory  of  the  Union,  but  none  for  its  improve- 
ment; the  men  who  were  governed  by  local  prejudices  more  than  by 
considerations  of  general  good.  Sectional  prejudice,  rival  routes  and 
schemes,  timidity,  indifference,  all  weighed  in  the  scale,  and  delayed  the 
consummation  for  many  a  weary  year  achieved  by  that  vote  passing  a  Pa- 
cific railroad  bill. 

Sir,  the  result  was  hailed  with  delight  in  my  own  State,  and  in  the 
great  commercial  centers  generally,  too  soon  turned  to  disappointment  by 
the  ultimate  failure  of  the  measure  through  the  less  progressive  action  of 
the  Senate.  To-day  this  great  work  is  not  further  advanced,  so  far  as 
Congress  is  concerned,  than  it  was  at  the  date  of  the  passage  of  that  bill. 
Although  both  Houses  are  now  filled  with  the  avowed  friends  of  the 
measure,  it  almost  seems  as  if  its  fate  would  be  to  be  betrayed  with  a 
kiss.  I  now  conceive  it  my  duty  —  representing,  as  I  do,  a  people  whose 
safety,  perhaps  their  power  to  remain  a  part  of  this  Union,  depends  upon 
it  —  to  speak  plainly  upon  it,  to  arouse  this  House  from  its  inaction,  and 
convince  it,  if  I  am  able,  that  this  railroad  is  a  necessity  of  the  times 
—  a  great  war  measure —  to  be  inaugurated  now,  if  regard  is  to  be  paid 
to  the  most  vital  interests  of  the  country.  I  would  that  this  task  had 
fallen  to  abler  hands.  I  have  waited  patiently  for  nearly  two  months  for 
some  experienced  member  to  rise  in  his  place  and  resume  the  discussion, 
and  urge  action.  I  have  waited  in  vain,  and  must,  perforce,  undertake 
the  onerous  task. 

Before,  however,  I  proceed  to  speak  upon  the  necessity  of  the  imme- 
diate action  of  Congress  in  favor  of  this  great  work,  I  wish  to  direct  the 
attention  of  the  House  to  the  pledges  that  have  heretofore  been  made  for 
its  speedy  construction.  The  Pacific  railroad  has  been  a  subject  of  so  great 
interest  and  such  acknowledged  importance,  that  it  has  been  incorporated 
into  the  platform  of  each  party  at  every  Presidential  election  since  1852, 
and  has  often  been  the  subject  of  special  recommendations  from  the  Pres- 
idents to  Congress.  Does  this  mean  nothing  ?  Is  it  a  settled  policy  to 
acknowledge  its  necessity  before  and  ignore  its  usefulness  after  a  Presiden- 
tial election?  Are  our  Presidents  insincere  in  their  recommendations? 
our  party  platforms  ingenious  deceptions?  our  pledges  to  the  people 
studied  falsehoods  ?  Are  not  the  promises  under  which  a  great  paity 
seeks  to  assume  the  reins  of  power  made  in  good  faith  ?  A  pledge  made 
under  these  circumstances  becomes  a  responsibility  when  that  party 
succeeds  to  power.  The  Democratic  party,  which  long  administered  the 
Government,  the  cardinal  doctrines  of  whose  creed  were  opposed  to  works 
of  internal  improvement,  were  compelled  by  the  justice  and  great  impor- 
tance of  this  measure,  and  by  the  demands  of  the  people,  to  change  their 
views,  and  find  authority  within  the  Constitution  whereby  this  Grovern- 
ment could  legally  extend  its  aid  toward  the  construction  of  this  work. 
The  Republican  party  has  always  asserted  such  authority,  and  been  fore- 
most in  its  declarations  in  favor  of  its  immediate  inauguration  by  the  di- 


rect  aid  of  the  national  Treasury.  And,  to  my  mind,  there  is  no  question 
of  constitutional  right  involved  in  this  case.  The  Constitution  speaks 
plainly.  It  confers  upon  Congress  the  power  to  declare  war,  to  raise  and 
support  armies,  and  to  repel  invasion. 

The  admission  of  new  States  or  Territories  into  the  Union  necessarily 
involves  new  duties  and  responsibilities  upon  the  parent  Government.  All 
are  mutually  interested  in  the  welfare,  protection,  and  perpetuity  of  the 
Union.  No  distinctions  or  preferences  can  be  shown ;  no  duties  or  re- 
sponsibilities evaded  on  account  of  locality.  The  States  and  Territories 
are  each  and  all  entitled  alike  to  the  support  and  protection  of  that  Union 
of  which  they  form  a  part,  and  whose  perpetuity  they  guaranty  to  defend 
and  uphold.  It  is  clearly  the  imperative  duty  of  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States,  therefore,  to  assume  the  responsibilities  imposed  by  the  Con- 
stitution, and  grant  to  the  several  States  the  protection  they  need,  and 
which  they  justly  claim  as  a  constitutional  right.  Under  the  authority  to 
declare  war  and  repel  invasion,  Congress  has  the  undisputed  power  to 
assume  the  construction  of  any  work  of  public  utility  or  necessity  which 
the  exigencies  of  war  may  demand.  We  may  build  fortifications  or  mili- 
tary roads ;  we  may  authorize  the  raising  of  an  army,  and  must  provide 
for  the  support  of  that  army.  We  have  power  to  transport  that  army, 
and  hence  to  provide  the  means  for  its  transportation ;  and  if  this  trans- 
portation involves  the  necessity  of  cutting,  making,  or  building  roads  of 
any  description,  it  is  not  only  our  right  but  our  duty  to  build  them. 

Then,  sir,  if  there  be  no  question  as  to  the  powers  of  Congress,  let  us 
inquire  as  to  its  duties  in  relation  to  this  matter. 

Between  the  Atlantic  coast  and  the  western  verge  of  the  valley  of  the 
Mississippi  was  but  lately  contained  the  wealth,  power,  and  influence  of 
this  great  Republic.  Until  after  the  Mexican  war,  the  entire  country  ly- 
ing still  further  west  to  the  Pacific  was  a  vast  territory,  nearly  uninter- 
rupted wilderness,  sparsely  settled,  and  of  which  little  was  known.  Our 
only  possession  on  the  Pacific  coast  was  Oregon  Territory,  the  home  of  a 
few  thousand  of  our  citizens,  and  the  trade  of  which  was  comparatively 
unimportant.  British  America  and  the  Russian  possessions  occupied  the 
territory  north  to  Behring  Straits,  while  Mexico  and  a  few  minor  states 
were  in  the  possession  of  the  coast  to  the  Isthmus  of  Panama.  As  a 
result  of  that  war  the  new  territory  of  California  and  New  Mexico  was 
added  to  our  possessions,  comprehending  a  line  of  sea-coast  extending 
from  the  thirty-fifth  to  the  forty-second  parallel  of  north  latitude,  equal  in 
extent  to  the  entire  Atlantic  sea-board  from  Maine  to  Florida.  Almost 
simultaneously  with  the  acquisition  of  this  territory  were  discovered  the 
extensive  gold  regions  of  the  Sierra  Nevadas,  the  result  of  which  has  been 
the  influx  of  population  into  this  new  country  unparalleled  in  the  annals 
of  history.  Within  the  past  twelve  years  a  steady  stream  of  immigration 
has  poured  into  those  new  possessions  by  every  available  route.  Steam- 
ers and  sailing  vessels  have  left  our  commercial  marts  crowded  with  our 
fellow-citizens  seeking  a  new  home  on  the  furthest  confines  of  our  western 
possessions ;  long  trains  of  emigrant  wagons,  accompanied  by  the  wives 
and  children  of  hardy  pioneers  of  the  Western  States,  have  taken  up  the 


line  of  march  for  a  home  still  further  west,  until,  at  the  present  time,  a 
population  of  over  half  a  million  souls  are  pursuing  their  daily  avocations 
upon  the  shores  of  the  Pacific.  Cities,  towns,  and  villages  have  sprung  into 
existence  as  if  by  magic.  Steamers  plow  our  seas,  and  shipping  from 
every  part  of  the  world  crowd  our  ports  and  line  our  wharves.  The 
steady  tide  of  gold  of  over  $500,000,000  which  has  during  the  past 
twelve  years  flowed  from  thence  to  benefit  the  older  States  of  the  Atlan- 
tic slope,  fully  attests  the  energy  and  industry  of  the  citizens  of  the  Pa- 
cific. 

Sir,  it  is  these  people  who  earnestly  demand,  through  us,  their  con- 
gressional Representatives,  to  be  heard  upon  the  great  questions  which 
affect  their  welfare.  The  States  of  California  and  Oregon  are  realities. 
They  are  legitimate  members  of  this  great  family.  They  are  ever  ready 
and  willing  to  fulfill  their  duties  and  obligations  to  the  parent  Government. 
They  are  true,  loyal,  and  patriotic.  They  will  lay  down  their  lives  and 
pour  out  their  treasure  in  support  of  this  glorious  Union.  In  the  State 
which  I  have  the  honor  in  part  to  represent,  they  have  battled  nobly  to 
overthrow  the  chivalric  dynasty  which  has  so  long  sat  like  an  incubus 
upon  the  breast  of  their  Government  —  that  factious  oligarchy,  whose 
Southern  sympathies  and  secession  tendencies  were  the  more  dangerous 
as  they  were  sought  to  be  concealed  under  the  specious  names  of  anti-co- 
ercion, peace  policy,  Pacific  Republic,  &c.  They  have  bravely  vindi- 
cated their  love  for  the  Union  by  striking  down,  as  I  believe,  forever, 
that  insidious  foe,  at  the  late  election.  And  they  claim  to  be  heard  at 
this  Congress  upon  the  subject  of  their  necessities  by  the  mouth  of  their 
chosen  and  honored  Representatives.  Their  great  want  is  action ;  action 
on  the  subject  of  a  railroad  communication  with  the  Atlantic  States. 

The  position  of  the  people  of  California,  and  of  the  whole  Pacific  coast, 
in  the  event  of  a  war  with  any  maritime  power,  is  an  unenviable  one. 
We  are  not  situated  as  are  our  sister  States  of  the  Atlantic  slope.  The 
Eastern  States  possess  within  themselves  elements  of  power  and  self-reli- 
ance which  will  enable  them  to  sustain  themselves  in  time  of  either  peace 
or  war.  Their  line  of  sea-coast,  their  lakes  and  maritime  cities,  are  pro- 
tected by  defensive  fortifications,  which  can  secure  them  from  invasion. 
Their  fields  of  mineral  wealth,  of  iron  and  coal,  are  already  developed, 
and  they  will  find  their  usual  markets  through  the  channels  of  communica- 
tion which  have  already  been  made,  and  which  a  foreign  war  cannot  close. 
Their  manufacturing  establishments  are  sufficiently  extensive  and  varied 
to  enable  them  to  manufacture  within  themselves  every  article  which  their 
necessities  may  require.  The  great  garden  and  storehouse  of  the  West, 
which  has  hitherto  supplied  food  not  only  for  the  consumption  of  the  At- 
lantic States,  but  for  the  needy  millions  of  foreign  countries,  will  be  open 
still,  and  will  be  drawn  upon  only  for  the  support  of  the  people  of  those 
States.  The  network  of  railroads  and  canals,  whose  ramifications  per- 
vade and  extend  to  every  part  of  the  country,  will  still  continue  in  oper- 
ation, and  afford  their  customary  facilities  for  the  transportation  of  public 
and  private  stores  and  goods,  still  be  available  for  the  purposes  of  Govern- 
ment, in  rapidly  concentrating  its  troops  at  any  required  point. 


But  how  is  it  with  us  ?  Members  of  the  same  Confederation,  we  are 
more  distant  from  our  mother  land  than  is  India  from  the  British  Isles. 
In  case  of  a  foreign  war,  we  possess  neither  the  power  nor  means  to  suc- 
cessfully defend  ourselves  from  the  assaults  of  our  foes.  The  Isthmus 
route,  now  available  and  open,  will  then  be  closed.  Our  only  water 
communication  will  be  via  Cape  Horn,  a  journey  of  over  fifteen  thou- 
sand miles,  requiring  from  four  to  five  months  to  make  the  passage  in 
clipper  ships,  and  this  assailable  by  the  enemy's  vessels  its  whole  length. 
Even  supposing  a  vessel  fortunate  enough  to  escape  the  attentions  of  the 
enemy's  cruisers  on  the  Atlantic,  she  must  then  run  the  gauntlet  of  the 
Pacific ;  and  on  arriving  at  San  Francisco,  how  will  she  pass  the  ene- 
my's blockading  fleet  ?  No,  sir ;  the  first  result  of  a  foreign  war  will  be 
the  entire  destruction  of  our  commerce.  We  are  confined  like  the  fox  in 
his  hole,  unable  to  advance  or  retreat. 

It  is  true  that  we  now  raise  breadstuff's  enough  to  supply  our  wants. 
But  if  the  enemy  once  obtain  a  foothold  upon  our  soil,  from  the  peculiar 
position  of  our  agricultural  lands,  which  lie  within  the  great  inland  val- 
leys of  the  Sacramento  and  the  San  Joaquin,  the  operations  of  the  hus- 
bandman would  soon  be  destroyed.  The  physical  formation  of  the  State 
of  California  is  peculiar.  Its  western  shore  is  washed  by  the  waters  of  the 
Pacific  ocean,  and  presents,  with  but  few  exceptions,  a  rugged,  rock- 
bound  coast.  Two  ranges  of  mountains  traverse  the  State  parallel  with 
the  general  line  of  coast  —  the  Sierra  Nevada  on  the  east,  and  the  Coast 
Range  on  the  west,  which  borders  upon  and  forms  a  barrier  to  the  Pa- 
cific ocean.  These  ranges  run  together  in  the  northern  and  southern 
portions  of  the  State,  leaving  between  them  a  large  valley  from  thirty  to 
fifty  miles  in  width,  and  about  four  hundred  miles  long,  called  the  Sacra- 
mento valley  on  the  north,  and  the  San  Joaquin  valley  on  the  south. 
The  Coast  Range  is  pierced  about  midway  by  the  Golden  Gate,  immedi- 
ately within  which  lies  the  harbor  or  bay  of  San  Francisco,  upon  which 
is  situated  the  city  and  port  of  San  Francisco,  the  commercial  center 
of  California,  and  of  the  Pacific  coast,  where  all  ships  come,  and 
where  all  cargoes  are  unloaded.  The  Sacramento  river  flowing 
southwardly,  and  the-  San  Joaquin  flowing  northwardly,  are  the  grand 
avenues  of  communication  with  the  interior  of  the  State ;  and  all  goods, 
merchandise,  &c.,  arriving  at,  and  not  consumed  in,  San  Francisco,  find 
their  way  to  the  interior  through  these  channels. 

These  two  rivers  are  connected  at  a  point  about  fifty  miles  above  San 
Francisco,  and  flowing  through  a  single  channel,  enter  the  head  of  the 
bay  of  San  Francisco  through  Carquines  straits,  about  twenty-five  miles 
north  of  San  Francisco.  The  bay  of  San  Francisco  is  about  sixty  miles 
long,  by  ten  miles  in  width,  extending  southerly  about  forty,  and  north- 
erly about  twenty,  miles  from  San  Francisco. 

The  agricultural  lands  lie  in  this  great  valley  of  the  Sacramento  and 
San  Joaquin,  pierced  by  the  rivers  thus  named,  while  on  the  western 
slope  of  the  Sierra  Nevada  is  carried  on  tHe  mining  operations,  and  there 
reside  three  fourths  of  the  population  of  California,  all  of  whom  are  de- 
pendent upon  San  Francisco  and  the  valleys  for  their  supplies. 


It  will  be  well  to  bear  in  mind  that  the  Sierra  Nevadas  are  in  winter 
time  uninhabited  above  an  elevation  of  about  four  thousand  feet  above 
the  sea,  on  account  of  the  snow. 

Now,  what  would  be  the  position  of  California  in  the  event  of  a  war 
with  a  foreign  maritime  power  ?  The  first  stroke  would  be  a  blockade  of 
the  harbor  of  San  Francisco,  the  result  of  which  would  be  the  entire  de- 
struction of  our  commerce,  and  consequently  a  complete  paralyzation  of 
business.  Our  commerical  intercourse  with  the  outward  world  would  be 
completely  annihilated.  What  follows  ?  The  prices  of  every  article  of 
food,  clothing,  usefulness,  or  luxury,  would  leap  suddenly  upwards  to 
starvation  rates.  Sir,  the  people  of  the  Atlantic  States  do  not  under- 
stand what  high  prices  mean  with  us.  Prices  with  us  depend  upon  the 
foreign  supply ;  and  many  a  needy  man,  in  the  early  days  of  Califor- 
nia, when  the  ocean  was  free,  and  ships  were  arriving  day  by  day  with 
full  cargoes  of  provisions,  has  had  to  pay  his  two  hundred  dollars  per 
barrel  for  flour,  and  a  dollar  a  pound  for  bacon  !  How  will  it  be  when  a 
blockade  of  San  Francisco  shuts  the  door  to  all  future  supplies  ?  when 
every  holder  knows  that  his  stock  on  hand  cannot  be  replenished  ?  God 
forbid  that  I  shall  ever  live  to  see  that  day  !  You  of  the  Atlantic  States 
will  never  be  compelled,  by  the  exigencies  of  war,  to  cry  out  for  bread. 
You  will  never  realize  the  miseries  of  Antwerp,  for  your  granary  is  at 
hand,  and  will  always  be  full  and  inaccessible  to  your  enemies.  But 
where  are  the  half  million  of  California  to  procure  their  bread?  We 
have  sent  relief  to  the  suffering,  starving  poor  of  Ireland.  Who  will  send 
relief  to  the  starving  men,  women,  and  children  of  California?  Be  your 
intentions  ever  so  good,  be  your  sympathies  ever  so  great,  be  your  sup- 
plies ever  so  adequate,  who  will  undertake  to  convey  those  supplies  to 
them,  and  how  will  they  reach  them  ? 

It  may  be  said  that  a  blockade  of  the  harbor  of  San  Francisco  will 
not  prevent  the  agriculturist  from  pursuing  his  labors  in  the  fields  and 
valleys,  and  that  there  we  must  look  for  supplies.  Let  no  one  deceive 
himself  with  that  idea.  I  have  spoken  of  this  blockade  as  the  first  blow 
which  will  probably  be  struck.  The  next  will  be  a  forced  entrance  into 
San  Francisco  bay.  It  is  not  to  be  conceived  that  a  powerful  enemy 
will  be  content  with  simply  blockading  the  port  of  San  Francisco.  Cal- 
ifornia is  too  rich  a  prize  to  lose  by  inaction,  and  history  teaches  that  the 
first-class  powers  of  Europe  do  not  despise  the  acquisition  of  valuable  ter- 
ritory. They  are  not  neglectful  of  any  favorable  opportunity  to  add  to 
those  wide  dominions  on  which  the  sun  never  sets. 

Let  us  see  what  are  the  inducements  to  a  campaign  for  conquest.  We 
have  there  in  the  center  of  the  Pacific  coast  a  port  and  harbor  hardly 
equaled  by  that  of  any  other  country  on  the  globe  ;  a  noble  bay,  stretch- 
ing away,  as  I  have  said,  forty  miles  to  the  southward,  and  twenty  to  the 
northward,  completely  land-locked,  in  which  the  navies  of  the  world 
might  ride  in  safety.  This  harbor,  accessible  only  by  a  narrow  entrance, 
and  forming  the  key  which  unlocks  or  locks  the  inland  navigation  to  a 
rich  valley  four  hundred  miles  in  length  and  fifty  in  width  —  the  key 
which  holds  possession  of  the  richest  mining  territory  of  gold  and  silver 


in  the  known  world,  whose  annual  yield  of  the  precious  metals  is  not  far 
short  of  $100,000,000  —  a  territory  which  employs  a  half  a  million  of 
people  in  its  development ;  a  magnificent  city  of  nearly  one  hundred 
thousand  inhabitants  lying  at  its  entrance,  with  its  wharves  and  docks, 
its  custom-house  and  mint,  its  costly  public  buildings  and  private  dwell- 
ings ;  commanding  this  entrance  are  a  system  of  fortifications  on  which 
millions  of  dollars  have  been  expended,  and  which,  when  fully  completed, 
under  the  supervision  of  a  great  Power  which  was  determined  to  make 
them  such,  could  be  made  as  impregnable  as  the  rock  of  Gibraltar. 

At  the  head  of  this  noble  bay  our  enemy  would  find  to  tempt  him  a 
capacious  navy-yard,  replete  with  every  modern  convenience  and  appli- 
ance necessary  for  his  purposes ;  a  dry-dock  within  which  to  repair  his 
ships ;  an  arsenal ;  barracks  for  his  soldiers ;  in  short,  everything  neces- 
sary to  enable  him  to  maintain  his  position,  all  built  and  ready  fitted  to 
his  hand.  Holding  these,  he  holds  California ;  he  holds  the  Pacific  coast ; 
he  holds  the  gold  and  silver  of  the  mountains ;  he  holds  the  commercial 
center  of  the  Pacific  —  the  great  mart  of  trade,  the  growing,  glorious 
empire  of  the  West,  the  pride  of  the  Union,  and  its  earnest,  faithful  ad- 
herent. Are  these  advantages  which  a  grasping,  powerful  enemy  would 
scorn  to  possess  himself  of?  Is  not  this  a  prize  worthy  ambition?  Will 
you  expose  your  jewels  to  every  thief,  and  then  stupidly  wonder  that  they 
are  stolen? 

But  I  hear  it  said  that  our  fortifications  will  protect  this  entrance. 
They  will  protect  it  against  any  ordinary  assailant ;  but  let  me  warn  the 
gentlemen  who  lay  that  flattering  unction  to  their  souls  that  it  was  also 
said  that  Sebastopol  could  not  be  taken,  and  yet  it  fell.  A  mistaken 
economy  in  refusing  to  purchase  a  strip  of  ground  has  prevented  the  com- 
pletion of  the  full  system  of  fortifications  designed  to  protect  the  entrance, 
and  they  are  yet  incomplete.  Alcatraz  and  Fort  Point  cannot  protect 
that  harbor.  You  may  pile  Ossa  on  Pelion  at  those  points ;  as  long  as 
a  fort  of  commensurate  strength  is  wanting  on  Lime  Point  the  harbor  is 
indefensible.  But  the  best  fortifications  would  avail  nothing  if  the  gar- 
risons were  cut  off  from  supplies  of  ammunition  or  food. 

Our  enemy  in  possession  of  this  harbor,  of  these  fortifications,  of  the 
navy-yard,  of  the  dry-dock,  and  arsenal,  and  in  command  of  the  inland 
navigation,  what  could  the  people  of  California  do  without  cannon  or  am- 
munition, and  without  the  means  of  procuring  them  ?  How  could  they 
protect  themselves  ?  Sir,  they  would  have  a  choice  of  evils  —  starvation, 
surrender  to  foreign  domination,  or  an  exodus  across  the  Sierras.  I  am 
no  alarmist,  nor  do  I  desire  to  add  one  jot  or  tittle  to  the  embarrassments 
under  which  our  beloved  country  is  now  laboring.  But  I  believe  I  speak 
the  words  of  sober  truth  when  I  say  that  had  the  late  Trent  imbroglio  not 
admitted  of  a  peaceful  solution ;  had  the  views  and  convictions  of  many 
of  my  friends  and  associates  on  this  floor  been  sustained  by  a  warlike 
answer  to  the  demands  of  Great  Britain,  or  a  refusal  to  deliver  up  the  per- 
sons of  the  confederate  embassadors,  that  to-day,  even  as  we  sit  here, 
this  first  blow  would  have  been  struck,  and  the  harbor  of  San  Francisco 
sealed. 


8 


Sir,  I  have  said  that  three  evils  would  present  themselves  to  the  peo- 
ple of  California.  I  cannot  bear  to  think  of  the  deep  disgrace  and  dis- 
aster to  our  country  implied  in  the  loss  of  its  Pacific  States,  to  think 
that  my  noble  State  may  be  the  appendage  of  a  distant  monarchy.  I 
believe  the  other  alternative  would  be  accepted  by  my  people  —  that  they 
would  flee  from  such  disgrace ;  and  if  the  time  does  ever  come  and  finds 
us  all  unprepared,  as  now  we  are  unprepared,  to  meet  the  emergency, 
there  will  be  witnessed  an  exodus  from  the  Pacific  coast  which  will  be  ever 
memorable  in  the  history  of  nations  —  such  an  emigrant  train  as  never  be- 
fore wended  its  way  across  this  continent.  It  will  travel  eastward,  and  its 
course  will  be  marked  for  centuries  to  come  by  the  whitened  bones  of 
thousands  of  men,  women,  and  children,  whose  last  earthly  cry  was  bread. 
Fleeing  from  a  war  against  which  they  had  no  defense,  from  starvation 
amid  inhospitable  mountains,  they  would  fall  and  die  in  the  wilderness. 
Would  you  bid  them  submit?  Sir,  I  know  the  gallant  hearts  of  my 
people.  I  know  that  many  thousands  would  contest  inch  by  inch  with 
the  invading  foe ;  that  they  would  fight  and  conquer  could  they  but  be 
fed  and  be  supplied  with  weapons.  You  need  no  standing  army  in  Cal- 
ifornia, aside  from  small  trained  garrisons  in  the  forts,  if  you  can  furnish 
its  hardy  sons  with  the  means  of  war.  But  these  not  to  be  obtained, 
they  would  be  driven  back  and  starved  out  till  they  surrendered  or  fled, 
and  California  be  lost  to  the  Union.  Think  you  a  treaty  would  restore 
it  ?  Go  make  a  treaty  with  the  vulture !  But  even  if  a  treaty  would 
restore  it,  would  you  deserve  the  adhesion  of  California  when  you  left  it 
a  defenceless  prey  to  covetous  enemies?  No,  sir;  once  lost,  it  is  lost 
forever. 

Sir,  I  have  said  that  it  is  the  duty  of  wise  statesmanship  to  legislate 
for  the  future  as  well  as  for  the  present.  We  cannot  lift  the  veil  which 
shrouds  the  events  of  another  year ;  but  it  is  our  duty  to  use  the  experi- 
ence of  the  past  in  determining  our  course  in  the  future. 

But  a  little  over  a  year  ago  all  was  sunshine  with  us.  If  any  member 
of  this  House  had  risen  in  his  seat  only  two  short  years  ago  and  predicted 
the  events  of  the  now  past  year  as  they  have  occurred,  he  would  have 
been  deemed  a  visionary  or  a  madman.  Had  he  told  us  that  a  rebellion 
would  be  inaugurated  so  powerful  as  to  require  the  organization  of  an  army 
of  half  a  million  of  men  to  quell  it,  would  he  have  been  believed  ?  Had 
he  told  us  that  our  capital  would  be  beleaguered  by  an  armed  rebel  force 
of  two  hundred  thousand  men;  that  brother  would  be  arrayed  against 
brother,  and  father  against  son;  that  all  the  terrible  implements  and 
enginery  of  warfare  would  be  brought  into  requisition  for  purposes  of 
destruction ;  that  fleets  more  powerful  than  ever  sailed  the  seas  before  would 
depart  from  our  shores  to  assail  our  then  fellow-citizens  —  had  he  told  us  of 
bloody  battles,  and  disgraceful  retreats,  and  recounted  the  sufferings  of 
prisoners  —  had  he  told  us  that  two  of  our  then  honorable  Senators  would 
become  traitors  and  rebels  to  this  Government,  and  as  such  would  be 
taken  by  a  war  vessel  belonging  to  this  Government  as  they  were  pro- 
ceeding on  their  way  as  emissaries  and  embassadors  of  a  rebel  govern- 
ment to  purchase  vessels,  arms,  and  munitions  of  war,  and  to  invoke  the 


9 


aid  of  foreign  Governments  to  assist  in  our  overthrow ;  that  their  deten- 
tion by  us  would  result  in  a  war  with  England,  would  he  not  have  been 
suspected  of  idle  dreaming  or  willful  folly?  Yet  all  this,  and  more,  has 
occurred ;  and  to-day  we  are  trying  to  provide  means  to  pay  or  secure  to 
be  paid  a  debt  of  $1,000,000,000  on  account  of  this  war,  of  which  we 
have  but  just  commenced  the  first  campaign. 

This  is  why,  I  repeat,  it  is  the  duty  of  wise  statesmanship  to  provide 
for  the  future.  We  know  that  we  are  passing  through  a  fiery  ordeal. 
We  have  just  escaped  the  brink  of  a  precipice,  the'  horrors  of  a  war  with 
the  most  powerful  nation  on  the  earth ;  a  war  which,  while  it  would  af- 
fect the  Atlantic  States  disastrously,  would  have  brought  total  ruin  and 
desolation  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  Pacific  coast,  unless  they  threw  them- 
selves without  resistance  into  the  arms  of  the  foreign  foe. 

It  is  the  right  of  those  people  to  ask,  it  is  the  duty  of  Congress  to  pro- 
vide, means  of  protection  ;  and  we  believe  that  protection  is  best  afforded, 
can,  in  fact,  be  only  afforded  by  the  immediate  construction  of  a  railroad 
connecting  the  Atlantic  States  with  those  of  the  Pacific.  If  we  are 
expected  to  repel  invasion,  we  must  be  provided  with  the  necessary  means. 
We  must  have  vast  storehouses  in  which  to  gather  grain,  food,  and  cloth- 
ing sufficient  for  many  years.  We  must  have  an  accumulation  of  ordnance, 
ammunition,  and  materiel  of  war  sufficient  to  maintain  a  five-years'  war 
if  necessary,  or  we  must  have  a  railroad  over  which  to  transport  these 
supplies.  I  believe  it  is  conceded  that  any  attempt  to  undertake  the 
transportation  of  these  supplies  and  stores  by  wagons  across  the  Territo- 
ries is  idle.  In  support  of  this  statement  I  may  be  permitted  to  quote 
from  the  report  of  the  Secretary  of  War  upon  the  Pacific  railroad  sur- 
veys during  the  administration  of  Mr.  Pierce  —  the  then  honorable  Jeffer- 
son Davis  —  now  the  military  commander  of  the  forces  in  armed  rebellion 
against  this  Government.  While  I,  in  common  with  all  lovers  of  the  Union, 
can  scarcely  find  words  to  express  my  abhorrence  of  the  recent  acts  of  this 
rebel  chief,  yet,  in  the  present  disposition  of  his  armies  and  forces,  we  find 
abundant  proof  of  his  military  sagacity  and  of  the  truth  of  his  observations 
that  I  shall  quote.  He  is  now  maintaining  positions  which  but  for  railroads 
would  be  utterly  untenable.  He  is  practically  illustrating  the  general 
truth  of  his  argument  upon  the  necessity  of  railroad  facilities  for  military 
transportation  ;  and  I  call  upon  gentlemen  here  to  controvert  the  truth  of 
these  statements  and  arguments  if  they  can.  He  says  :  RQFT  UBRA»Y 

"  The  facts  developed  by  these  surveys,  added  to  other  information  which  we  possess, 
suggest  some  considerations  of  great  interest  with  regard  to  our  territory  on  the  Pacific. 
They  exhibit  it  as  a  narrow  slope  of  an  average  width  of  less  than  one  hundred  and  fifty 
miles  of  cultivable  land,  skirting  the  ocean  for  a  distance  of  a  thousand  miles,  rich  in 
those  mineral  productions  which  are  tempting  even  beyond  their  value,  and  which  would 
be  most  readily  turned  to  the  use  of  an  invader ;  drained  by  two  rivers  of  wide-spread 
branches,  and  with  seaports  lying  so  directly  upon  the  ocean  that  a  hostile  fleet  could 
commence  an  attack  upon  any  one  of  them  within  a  few  hours  after  being  descried  from 
land ;  or,  if  fortified  against  attack,  so  few  in  number  that  comparatively  few  ships  would 
suffice  to  blockade  them. 

"  This  territory  is  not  more  remote  from  the  principal  European  States  than  from  those 


10 


parts  of  our  own  country  whence  it  would  derive  its  military  supplies ;  and  some  of 
those  States  have  colonies  and  possessions  on  the  Pacific,  which  would  greatly  facilitate 
their  operations  against  it.  With  these  advantages,  and  those  which  the  attacking  force 
always  has  of  choice  of  time  and  place,  an  enemy  possessing  a  considerable  military 
marine  could,  with  comparatively  little  cost  to  himself,  subject  us  to  enormous  expenses 
in  giving  to  our  Pacific  frontier  that  protection  which  it  is  the  duty  of  the  General  Gov- 
ernment to  afford. 

"  In  the  first  years  of  a  war  with  any  great  maritime  Power  the  communication  by  sea 
could  not  be  relied  upon  for  the  transportation  of  supplies  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pa- 
cific States.  Our  naval  peace  establishment  would  not  furnish  adequate  convoys  for  the 
number  of  store-ships  which  it  would  be  necessary  to  employ ;  and  store-ships  alone, 
laden  with  supplies,  could  not  undertake  a  voyage  of  twenty  thousand  miles,  passing 
numerous  neutral  ports,  where  an  enemy's  armed  vessels,  even  of  the  smallest  size, 
might  lie  in  wait  to  intercept  them. 

"  The  only  line  of  communication,  then,  would  be  overland ;  and  by  this  it  would  be 
impracticable,  with  any  means  heretofore  used,  to  furnish  thp  amount  of  supplies  re- 
quired for  the  defense  of  the  Pacific  frontier.  At  the  present  prices  over  the  best  part 
of  this  route,  the  expense  of  land  transportation  alone,  for  the  annual  supplies  of  pro- 
visions, clothing,  camp  equipage,  and  ammunition  for  such  an  army  as  it  would  be  neces- 
sary to  maintain  there,  would  exceed  $20,000,000;  and  to  maintain  troops  and  carry  on 
defensive  operations  under  those  circumstances,  the  expense  per  man  would  be  six  times 
greater  than  it  is  now  ;  the  land  transportation  of  each  field  twelve-pounder,  with  a  due 
supply  of  ammunition  for  one  year,  would  cost  $2,500  ;  of  each  twenty-four-pounder  and 
ammunition,  §9,000;  and  of  a  sea-coast  gun  and  ammunition,  $12,000.  The  transporta- 
tion of  ammunition  for  a  year  for  a  thousand  sea-coast  guns  would  cost  $10,000,000.  But 
the  cost  of  transportation  would  be  vastly  increased  by  a  war ;  and  at  the  rates  that  were 
paid  on  the  northern  frontier  during  the  last  war  with  Great  Britain,  the  above  estimates 
would  be  trebled.  The  time  required  for  the  overland  journey  would  be  from  four  to 
six  months.  In  point  of  fact,  however,  supplies  for  such  an  army  could  not  be  trans- 
ported across  the  continent.  On  the  arid  and  barren  belts  to  be  crossed  the  limited  quan- 
tities of  water  and  grass  would  soon  be  exhausted  by  the  numerous  draught  animals 
required  for  heavy  trains,  and  over  such  distances  forage  could  not  be  carried  for  their 
subsistence. 

"  On  the  other  hand,  the  enemy  would  send  out  his  supplies  at  from  one  seventh  to  one 
twentieth  the  above  rates,  and  in  less  time  — perhaps  in  one  fourth  the  time  — if  he  could 
obtain  command  of  the  Isthmus  route. 

"  Any  reliance,  therefore,  upon  furnishing  that  part  of  our  frontier  with  means  of  de- 
fense from  the  Atlantic  and  interior  States,  after  the  commencement  of  hostilities,  would 
be  vain  ;  and  the  next  resource  would  be  to  accumulate  there  such  amount  of  stores  and 
supplies  as  would  suffice  during  the  continuance  of  the  contest,  or  until  we  could  obtain 
command  of  the  sea.  Assigning  but  a  moderate  limit  to  this  period,  the  expense  would 
yet  be  enormous.  The  fortifications,  depots,  and  storehouses  would  necessarily  be  on 
the  largest  scale,  and  the  cost  of  placing  supplies  there  for  five  years  would  amount  to 
nearly  one  hundred  million  dollars. 

"  In  many  respects,  the  cost  during  peace  would  be  equivalent  to  that  during  Avar. 
The  perishable  character  of  many  articles  would  render  it  perhaps  impracticable  to  put 
provisions  in  depot  for  a  such  length  of  time  ;  and,  in  any  case,  there  would  be  deterio- 
ration amounting  to  some  million  dollars  per  year. 

"  These  considerations,  and  others  of  a  strictly  military  character,  cause  the  Department 
to  examine  with  interest  all  projects  promising  the  accomplishment  of  a  railroad  commu- 
nication between  the  navigable  waters  of  the  Mississippi  and  those  of  the  Pacific  ocean. 
As  military  operations  depend  in  a  greater  degree  upon  rapidity  and  certainty  of  move- 
ment than  upon  any  other  circumstance,  the  introduction  of  railway  transportation  has 
greatly  improved  the  means  of  defending  our  Atlantic  and  inland  frontiers  ;  and  to  give 
us  a  sense  of  security  from  attack  upon  the  most  exposed  portion  of  our  territory,  it  is 
requisite  that  the  facility  of  railroad  transportation  should  be  extended  to  the  Pacific 
coast.  Were  such  a  road  completed,  our  Pacific  coast,  in  lieu  of  being  further  removed 


in  time,  and  less  accessible  to  us  than  to  an  enemy,  would  be  brought  within  a  few  days 
of  easy  communication,  and  the  cost  of  supplying  an  army  there,  instead  of  being  many 
times  greater  to  us  than  to  him,  would  be  about  equal.  We  would  be  relieved  of  the 
necessity  of  accumulating  large  supplies  on  that  coast,  to  waste,  perhaps,  through  long 
years  of  peace ;  and  we  could  feel  entire  confidence  that,  let  war  come  when  and  with 
whom  it  may,  before  a  hostile  expedition  could  reach  that  exposed  frontier,  an  ample 
force  could  be  placed  there  to  repel  any  attempt  at  invasion." 

Sir,  I  can  add  little  to  such  an  argument ;  it  is  comprehensive  and 
conclusive. 

It  is  said  that  the  country  is  now  struggling  for  existence ;  that  im- 
mense debts  are  being  incurred ;  and  that  we  cannot  now  go  into  further 
debt  until  the  present  difficulties  have  been  overcome ;  and  that  even  if 
the  construction  of  the  road  were  commenced  now  it  could  not  be  com- 
pleted within  the  next  ten  years. 

Sir,  if  the  position  I  have  assumed  is  correct,  to  wit,  that  this  work  is 
a  military  necessity,  it  is  as  properly  the  subject  of  immediate  legislation 
as  are  our  forts  and  sea-board  defenses.  It  cannot  be  commenced  too 
soon,  and  the  length  of  time  required  to  construct  it  should  be  the  strong- 
est argument  in  favor  of  immediate  action.  You  may  on  this  side  be 
able  to  wait  ten  or  twenty  years  without  feeling  its  necessity.  But,  sir, 
we  upon  the  other  side  will  wait  in  silent  suspense,  in  fear  and  trembling. 
Why  should  you  hesitate  longer  to  perform  this  great  act  of  justice  to 
your  brethren  of  the  Pacific  ?  Can  you  afford  to  lose  California  and  your 
Pacific  possessions  ?  Are  they  not  worth  the  cost  of  a  railroad  ?  How 
will  your  money  market  endure  the  deprivation  of  our  gold  ?  How  your 
manufactories  sustain  the  loss  of  our  trade,  as  they  would  with  a  change 
of  tariff  to  suit  foreign  producers  ?  Would  not  your  debt  be  lightened  by 
developing  your  intermediate  Territories  ?  If  a  war  should  come,  the 
cost  of  keeping  your  Pacific  States,  even  if  you  succeeded  in  the  effort, 
which  would  be  impossible,  would  amount  to  treble  the  cost  of  this  road. 
Is  the  empire  we  have  founded  on  the  Pacific  not  worth  protection  ?  If 
not,  why  was  it  established? 

It  is  said  that  the  danger  of  a  war  with  England  is  now  past.  Let  us 
not  deceive  ourselves.  The  hostile  feeling  towards  this  country  which 
seized  upon  the  late  trivial  difficulty  when  we  were  in  the  midst  of  embar- 
rassment and  danger,  and  made  it  the  occasion  of  a  war,  still  exists ;  and 
I  say  to  you  here  that  the  danger  of  a  war  is  not  past  until  the  lion  of 
England  has  become  a  lamb,  incapable  of  giving,  or  we  sunk  so  low  that 
we  are  incapable  of  receiving,  an  insult. 

Many  obstacles  which  have  heretofore  delayed  action  on  this  measure 
are  now  removed.  The  factious  and  determined  opposition  of  the  Repre- 
sentatives from  the  Southern  States  is  now  withdrawn.  The  difficulty  of 
settling  upon  routes  does  not  now  exist,  for  the  question  of  a  Southern  route 
cannot  enter  into  our  discussions.  The  necessity  of  railroads  for  military 
purposes  has  been  demonstrated  by  practical  experience.  The  danger  of 
a  foreign  war  has  aroused  the  public  mind  to  the  absolute  necessity  of  a 
railroad  to  the  Pacific.  The  late  interference  of  the  New  Granadian  au- 
thorities with  the  transit  of  our  prisoners  across  the  Isthmus  of  Panama 


12 


warns  us  of  the  insecurity  of  that  route.  The  only  objection  which  I  hear 
urged  is  the  inability  of  Government  to  assume  new  obligations,  or  to  add 
to  the  present  large  debt  incurred  in  quelling  the  rebellion. 

Sir,  the  argument  that  this  Government  is  ever  too  poor  to  do  equal 
justice  to  all  the  members  of  its  family  is  not  a  fair  argument.  But  it 
can  be  shown  clearly  that  this  assumed  additional  debt  will  not  become  a 
burden  upon  the  Treasury  of  the  country.  There  are  two  methods  by 
which  Government  can  consistently  lend  its  aid,  and  by  which  that  aid 
will  prove  effectual,  both  of  which  contemplate  a  future  reimbursement  of 
the  sums  advanced;  while  from  the  enhanced  value  of  the  lands  along  the 
line,  the  development  of  mineral  wealth,  and  from  the  rapid  settlement  of 
the  country,  now  a  wilderness,  through  which  the  road  will  pass,  the 
Government  will  prove  a  grainer  in. a  business  point  of  view. 

The  bill  which  I  have  had  the  honor  to  introduce  in  this  House  con- 
templates the  issuance  of  United  States  bonds  to  be  loaned  to  the  eom- 
pany  at  a  fixed  amount  per  mile,  being  about  one  half  the  contemplated 
cost  of  the  road,  upon  the  completion  of  continuous  sections  of  twenty-five 
and  fifty  miles ;  also  a  grant  of  alternate  sections  of  the  public  lands  for 
six  miles  upon  either  side  of  the  road. 

Although  I  have  long  been  in  favor  of  a  different  plan  or  mode  of 
granting  aid,  yet  inasmuch  as  the  scheme  I  have  named  appears  to  have 
been  the  one  adopted  by  the  committee  at  their  last  or  Thirty-Sixth  ses- 
sion, it  having  been  thoroughly  discussed  and  finally  approved  by  the 
House,  I  felt  almost  instructed  to  conform  to  the  thus  expressed  ideas  of 
the  House  upon  the  subject,  and  accordingly  introduced  a  bill  in  conform- 
ity thereto.  Under  that  bill  I  think  it  can  be  successfully  demonstrated 
that  no  great  additional  burden  will  be  laid  on  the  Treasury  of  the  United 
States  for  many  years  to  come. 

As  before  stated,  the  bill  provides  that  upon  the  completion  of  sections 
of  a  certain  length,  the  United  States  shall  issue  their  bonds  at  a  certain 
rate  per  mile  to  the  company ;  also  issue  to  them  the  lands  appertaining 
to  such  completed  section  or  division.  At  the  rates  proposed  it  is  likely 
that  the  total  amount  of  bonds  issued  will  be  about  sixty  millions  of  dol- 
lars. But  it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  these  bonds  are  not  to  be  issued 
at  once.  At  least  one  year  after  the  passage  of  the  bill  will  be  consumed 
in  making  the  necessary  surveys,  and  in  preparing  for  work ;  and  it  will 
not  be  until  at  the  expiration  of  the  second  year  that  any  bonds  will  be 
called  for.  If  we  assume  the  length  of  the  road  to  be  two  thousand  miles, 
to  be  completed  in  ten  years,  this  will  require  the  completion  of  an  aver- 
age length  of  two  hundred  miles  per  year.  If  we  assume  the  whole  cost 
to  be  sixty  millions,  then  there  will  be  required  the  issuance  of  six  mil- 
lions of  dollars  per  year  —  the  interest  on  which,  at  six  per  cent. ,  will  be 
$360,000  per  year.  At  the  expiration  of  the  second  year  it  is  likely  that 
an  issue  of  six  millions  in  bonds  will  be  called  for.  But  inasmuch  as  the 
interest  is  to  be  paid  semi-annually,  it  follows  that  under  the  provisions  of 
this  bill,  for  a  period  of  two  and  a  half  years  after  its  passage,  no  pay- 
ment of  interest  from  the  United  States  Treasury  is  required.  The  pay- 
ment then  becoming  due  will  be  $180,000  ;  and  at  the  end  of  the  third 


13 


year  it  will  be  an  additional  $180,000,  The  total  amount  of  payments 
required  at  the  close  of  the  fifth  year,  inclusive,  will  have  been 
$5,400,000,  and  the  annual  payment  of  interest  on  the  completion  of  the 
road  will  be  $3,600,000.  Are  these  the  fearful  expenditures  that  frighten 
gentlemen  when  they  hear  this  subject  mentioned  ?  The  bill  further  pro- 
vides that  these  sums  shall  be  repaid  the  Government  in  transportation  of 
mails,  military  stores,  troops,  &c.,  and  that  Government  may,  in  case  of 
war,  take  possession  of  and  use  the  road  for  its  purposes.  Even  if  it 
takes  ten  years  to  build  the  road,  we  do  not  wait  so  long  for  its  benefits. 
Every  mile  that  is  constructed  bridges  the  gap  between  the  two  oceans, 
and  adds  new  security  to  our  Pacific  possessions,  by  increasing  the  fa- 
cilities and  diminishing  the  cost  of  defending  and  supplying  them. 

It  is  believed  that  the  Government  business,  at  the  expiration  of  ten 
years,  between  the  Atlantic  States  and  Nebraska,  Colorado,  Utah,  Ne- 
vada, Washington,  Oregon,  and  California,  in  addition  to  the  mails,  will 
have  increased  sufficiently  to  compensate  for  this  annual  interest,  while  the 
legitimate  business  of  the  road  ought  to  be  of  sufficient  magnitude  to 
afford  a  sinking  fund  for  the  repayment  of  the  principal. 

Under  this  arrangement,  how  can  the  United  States  become  losers,  or 
how  can  this  grant  operate  as  a  burden  on  the  Treasury?  As  security 
for  the  repayment  of  any  funds  loaned  by  the  Government,  the  bonds 
operate  as  a  first  mortgage  upon  a  property  which  will  have  cost  double 
their  amount. 

In  most  of  the  details  this  bill  is  similar  to  the  one  passed  by  this 
House  at  the  last  session  of  the  Thirty-Sixth  Congress ;  which  bill  was  so 
thoroughly  discussed  and  examined  by  the  House  during  that  and  the 
preceding  session  that  I  deem  it  unnecessary  to  enter  into  further  ex- 
planations in  regard  to  its  details.  Quite  an  important  alteration,  how- 
ever, in  regard  to  the  rates  of  appropriation  per  mile  upon  the  western 
end  will  be  observed,  which  is  thus  explained. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  surveys  made  by  the  Government  engineers 
were  not  close  railroad  surveys,  but  barometrical  reconnoissances,  which, 
while  affording  data  sufficiently  accurate  from  which  to  deduce  general 
results,  do  not  furnish  information  of  the  character  necessary  to  deter- 
mine with  accuracy  the  cost  of  a  line  over  a  difficult  country.  The  esti- 
mates of  distance  and  cost  upon  the  central  route  entering  California,  in- 
cluding the  passage  of  the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains,  were  made  upon 
the  line  surveyed,  by  order  of  Government,  by  Lieutenant  Beckwith, 
whose  line  crossed  these  mountains  in  the  extreme  northern*  part  of  the 
State,  via  the  headwaters  of  the  Sacramento. 

Since  that  time  reconnoissances  have  been  made  of  several  routes 
through  central  California,  resulting  in  the  discovery  of  an  entirely  new 
route  across  the  Sierra  Nevada  mountains,  upon  which  an  accurate,  sci- 
entific railroad  survey  has  recently  been  made  by  T.  D.  Judah,  Esq,,  an 
accomplished  civil  engineer,  who  has  done  more  to  advance  the  great 
Pacific  railroad  work  by  years  of  labor  and  devotion  than  any  other  man 
in  the  country.  His  surveys  develop  the  fact  that,  with  less  maximum 
grades  than  those  employed  on  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  railroad,  this  route 


14 


effects  a  saving  in  distance  of  nearly  two  hundred  miles,  and  a  saving  in 
cost  of  nearly  fifteen  millions  of  dollars  —  no  mean  items  in  reclaming 
the  length  and  cost  of  a  Pacific  railroad. 

From  my  personal  knowledge  of  the  manner  in  which  those  surveys 
were  prosecuted,  and  the  recognized  ability  and  professional  skill  of  the 
engineer,  I  place  the  utmost  confidence  in  their  results,  and  have  there- 
fore thought  proper  to  avail  myself  of  the  estimates  of  cost  of  crossing 
the  Sierra  Nevadas  as  presented  by  the  report  of  the  engineer,  in  deter- 
mining the  amount  of  relative  appropriations  per  mile  across  the  Sierras 
to  a  connection  with  Lieutenant  Beckwith's  line  at  Lassen's  Meadows  or 
crossing  of  the  Humboldt  river.  For  the  information  of  those  who  may 
feel  interested  in  the  matter,  I  will  state  that  this  report  was  printed  by 
order  of  the  House,  and  has  been  laid  on  the  tables  of  members  at  the 
present  session. 

I  have  said  that,  in  view  of  the  previous  action  of  this  House,  I  felt 
instructed  to  offer  a  bill  of  the  nature  I  have  described ;  yet  there  was 
another  plan  upon  which  the  road  might  be  successfully  constructed,  and 
my  judgment  has  long  since  inclined  me  to  favor  a  plan  of  Government 
guarantee  as  the  surest  and  simplest  plan  of  extending  our  aid.  This 
plan,  after  mature  deliberation  by  two  of  the  greatest  Powers  of  Europe  — 
England  and  Russia  —  has  been  adopted  by  them  in  furtherance  of  the 
prosecution  of  a  system  of  railroads  in  British  India  and  in  Russia,  as  the 
best  system  which  could  be  devised  for  that  purpose ;  and  in  its  admirable 
workings  we  may  learn  a  lesson  of  wisdom  which  will  prove  of  practical 
"benefit  to  ourselves  in  determining  our  future  course  upon  this  subject. 

The  length  of  lines  sanctioned  by  the  guarantee  of  Government,  up  to 
1858,  in  British  India,  was  four  thousand  eight  hundred  and  forty-seven 
miles,  of  which  three  thousand  and  thirty-eight  miles  were  in  the  course  of 
construction,  and  would  be  completed  during  the  year  1862.  The  capital 
guarantied  by  Government  was  about  two  hundred  millions  of  dollars,  of 
which  one  half  had  then  been  fully  paid  up  —  in  other  words,  the  Govern- 
ment guarantied  upon  the  entire  cost  of  the  roads,  amounting  to  about  two 
hundred  millions  of  dollars,  a  per  cent,  profit.  The  theory  of  the  guaran- 
tee is,  that  the  lines  will  pay  the  per  cent,  guarantied.  If  they  fail  to  be 
so  profitable,  the  Government,  under  its  guarantee,  would  make  up  the 
deficiency  for  a  period  of  years ;  thus  inducing  capitalists  to  embark  in  the 
enterprises.  The  balance  the  Government  would  supply  would,  of  course, 
be  charged  to  the  railroad  company,  to  be  refunded  in  transportation  of 
mails,  troops?  &c.  The  cost  of  the  construction  of  those  roads  averages 
$60,000  per  mile. 

From  an  interesting  report  to  Parliament  upon  the  construction  of  railways 
in  India,  made  in  1859,  it  appears  that  seven  different  companies  were 
engaged  in  constructing  railroads  in  India,  under  the  guarantee  of  the 
Government.  They  are  enumerated  as  follows : 

The  East  India  Company,  extending  from  Calcutta  to  Delhi,  with  a 
branch  from  Mirzapoor  to  the  line  of  the  Peninsula  Company  at  Jubbul- 
poor,  the  total  length  of  which  is  fourteen  hundred  miles,  and  the  cost  of 
which,  already  completed  to  Patna,  has  been  about  sixty  thousand  dollars 
per  mile.  It  is  estimated  to  cost  $70,000,000  completed. 


15 


The  East  India  Peninsula  Company,  from  Bombay  northerly  to  the 
East  India  line  at  Jubbulpoor,  and  southerly  to  meet  the  Madras  line  at 
Bellary.  This  line  was,  at  the  time  of  the  report,  completed  to  Poonah. 
Its  estimated  cost  is  $60,000,000. 

The  Madras  Company,  extending  from  Madras  to  Beypoor,  on  the 
Malabar  coast;  estimated  cost  $30,000,000. 

The  Bombay,  Paroda,  and  Central  India  line,  extending  from  Bombay 
to  Ahmedabad ;  costing  $10,000,000. 

The  Scinde  and  Punjaub  line,  from  Kurrachee  to  Kotree,  and  from 
Mooltan  to  Lahore;  costing  $13,000,000. 

The  Bengal  line,  from  Calcutta  to  Dacca,  with  a  branch  to  Jessore ; 
costing  $5,000,000. 

The  Great  Southern  Company,  from  Salem  to  Negapatam  and  Madura ; 
costing  $10,000,000. 

These  seven  lines  alone,  costing  $200,000,000,  or  twice  the  cost  of 
the  Pacific  railroad,  are  at  this  moment  nearly  completed.  There  are 
projected  in  British  India,  at  the  present  time,  twelve  thousand  miles  of 
railroad,  which  will  cost  $600,000,000.  These  roads  are  spread  like  a 
network  over  India,  and  fully  attest  the  foresight  and  sagacity  of  that 
Government  in  thus  early  recognizing  the  absolute  necessity  of  railroad 
communication  as  a  means  of  strengthening  the  power  of  the  English  Gov- 
ernment in  the  exercise  of  her  authority  over  these  important  possessions. 
Had  a  railroad  been  at  the  command  of  Havelock,  how  much  earlier  would 
Lucknow  have  been  relieved  from  the  distresses  of  that  awful  siege. 

For  the  construction  of  all  these  lines  it  is  stated  that  the  Government 
guarantee  has  been  given.  The  companies  have  the  power  of  surrender- 
ing the  works,  at  any  time  after  their  entire  completion,  upon  giving  six 
months'  notice  to  the  Government,  which  undertakes  to  pay  the  amount 
expended  thereon  by  the  companies.  The  Government  has  the  power, 
within  six  months  after  the  expiration  of  twenty-five  or  thirty  years,  of 
purchasing  the  railways  at  the  mean  market  value  in  London  of  the 
shares  during  the  three  previous  years.  In  case  of  a  failure  to  complete 
these  lines,  or  to  work  them  satisfactorily,  the  Government  is  authorized 
to  assume  possession  of  the  same,  and  repay  within  six  months  the  sum 
expended. 

The  Russian  Government  has  also  adopted  the  same  method  of  carrying 
into  execution  the  grand  system  of  railroad  improvements  projected  in 
that  empire.  The  building  of  these  roads  was  undertaken  by  the  society 
of  the  Credit  Mobilier,  which  assumes  the  construction  of  about  thirty- 
eight  hundred  versts  —  equal  to  twenty-seven  hundred  miles  —  of  railroads. 
The  "  concession  "  or  franchise  is  for  eighty-five  years ;  the  capital  of  the 
company  is  270,000,000  silver  roubles,  or  about  $220,000,000 ;  the 
issue  of  shares  not  to  exceed  that  amount ;  a  third  of  these  shares  are 
allotted  to  the  Russian  Government ;  the  shares  of  the  company  are  not  to 
be  quoted  on  the  Bourse ;  the  Government  guarantees  a  minimum  of  five 
per  cent.  By  means  of  these  lines,  Russia  will  have  obtained  the  power 
to  move  her  vast  armies  and  their  supplies,  with  the  greatest  rapidity,  to 
her  frontiers.  Notwithstanding  the  immense  debt  created  by  the  Crimean 


16 


war,  the  Russian  Government  did  not  falter  in  the  prosecution  of  these 
immense  works,  well  knowing  that  the  protection  of  the  extremities  was 
as  necessary  to  national  honor  and  safety  as  that  of  the  center  of  the 
empire.  And  let  me  tell  gentlemen  who  fear  to  grapple  with  this  ques- 
tion of  a  military  road,  which  must  be  built  to  maintain  the  integrity  of 
our  country,  and  who  fear  the  debt  thereby  incurred,  that  they  are  in  the 
infancy  of  statesmanship,  and  unable  to  profit  by  the  obvious  lessons  the 
powerful  nations  of  Europe  are  teaching  us.  The  same  idle  security  and 
want  of  comprehension  has  left  us  without  a  Navy  to  encounter  a  maritime 
war,  when  Europe  was  expending  vast  sums  upon  iron-clad  steamers  and 
improved  enginery  of  war,  before  which  granite  defences  are  as  glass ;  and 
if  there  is  not  a  change  of  sentiment,  and  some  spirit  infused  into  our 
counsels,  some  profit  seized  from  the  example  of  the  world,  posterity  will 
have  reason  to  reproach  us  that  we  allowed  to  slip  from  our  grasp  the 
noblest  land  the  sun  ever  shone  upon, —  an  empire  capable  of  development 
surpassing  thought,  —  a  portion  of  our  country  that  may  be  the  center  of 
the  greatest  power  and  civilization  the  world  shall  ever  see. 

Had  these  railways  of  Russia  been  completed  before  the  Crimean  war, 
the  fiite  of  that  war  would  have  been  differently  decided. 

One  distinguishing  characteristic  of  this  immense  Russian  grant  for 
internal  improvements,  is,  that  commercial  advantages  are  made  only  a 
secondary  consideration,  the  acknowledged  primary  object  being  the  con- 
struction of  those  roads  for  their  importance  as  military  roads.  Thus,  upon 
the  line  between  St.  Petersburg  and  Moscow,  about  four  hundred  miles 
hi  length,  the  convenience  of  the  intermediate  country  was  not  taken  into 
consideration.  Without  respect  to  intervening  villages,  towns,  or  cities, 
or  districts,  the  road  was  built  in  almost  a  straight  line,  having  upon  its 
entire  length  only  nineteen  stations.  All  considerations  of  traffic  were 
spurned ;  and  the  road  was  built  at  a  cost  scarcely  exceeded  by  that  of  any 
other  railroad,  of  equal  length,  in  the  world.  It  was  laid  out  and  super- 
intended by  military  engineers,  was  constructed  chiefly  by  military  labor, 
and  its  workings  are  superintended  by  military  officers. 

If  we  can  draw  instruction  from  the  experience  of  older  nations  as  to 
the  best  mode  of  advancing  the  prosecution  of  this  to  us  great  under- 
taking, I  respectfully  submit  if  it  is  not  the  part  of  wisdom  to  give  ear 
to  the  teachings  of  that  experience,  though  it  may  come  from  a  foreign 
country. 

Sir,  if  fortunately  I  may  be  able  by  my  efforts  of  this  day  to  excite  an 
active  interest  in  this  great  and  necessary  military  work,  I  shall  have 
justified  my  consumption  of  the  tune  of  the  committee.  Commercial  con- 
siderations I  have  not  dwelt  upon,  although  important.  If  the  House 
wills  to  aid  this  grand  national  measure,  I  may  by  and  by  crave  its  indul- 
gence in  further  discussion  of  details. 

I  have  spoken  from  a  full  heart,  and  from  long  and  anxious  study ;  and 
I  beg  that  this  session  may  not  pass  away  without  the  inauguration  of  a 
Pacific  railroad  upon  one  of  the  plans  which  I  have  presented,  or  some 
other  that  shall  commend  itself  to  the  wisdom  of  the  House. 


